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Kathleen Smith DipWSET

@thehappyvineks

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Dive into the world of WINE 🍷
Brand Specialist | Writer | Wine Events | Judge
Owner The Happy Vine
VIA Wine Educator Innovation Nominee 2026
LDE

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Not all milestones come with a trophy. 🏆 🍷

This weekend at the @vinoinfluencers World Awards in Valladolid, I stood among wine storytellers, professionals & influencers from thirty-four countries — nominated in the Wine Educator Innovation category. I am still holding that feeling close.

Being nominated was never about winning. It was a quiet recognition of years of showing up: the early mornings writing, the late nights editing, the tastings that turn into conversations, the glass that becomes a doorway into someone else’s land, family, and work. Hard work. Dedication. Passion for wine that has never felt like a career so much as a calling I keep answering.

Thank you — to every person who has followed, shared, commented, sat at a tasting, or simply believed that wine education can be warm, sensory, and human.

We would not be here without the stories and journeys of the winemakers. They are the soul of the bottle. Every post, every pairing, every “can you taste the limestone?” begins with them.
A nomination is a beautiful pause. The work continues — the next vineyard walk, the next glass, the next story that deserves to be told with care.
Grateful. Grounded. Still completely in love with this world.

#vinoinfluencers #wineawards #valladolid #wineevent #womaninwine by @thehappyvineks

Top Global Wine Ambassador (2025)
Winner: @thehappyvineks

Kathleen is recognized for representing the global wine world with exceptional knowledge, professionalism, and passion. As a DipWSET, experienced wine judge, and dedicated traveler, she brings credibility and depth to every region, producer, and tasting she shares. Her content blends technical expertise with real-world exploration, offering an informed, engaging, and truly international perspective on wine.

@winecreatorawards by @thehappyvineks

Behind the red doors 🍰❤️

I’ve watched America’s Test Kitchen since I was a young girl on the couch with my mom. This week I walked into the real thing: the studio, the test kitchens, 86 ovens, and the largest privately held cookbook library on the Northeast coast.

The best part was the people: the warmest hosts and team, and bakers from every corner of the country. Thank you, @testkitchen and @plugrabutter , for a day I’ll never forget.

@britneybreaksbread @dinnerin321 @inalexaskitchen @thepancakeprincess @sarah_kieffer @beyond.the.butter @tarateaspoon @lara.zelman @jamladykitchen @frenchvanillabaker @chahinez_tbt

#americastestkitchen #behindthescene #baking #foodlover #butter by @thehappyvineks

The finished table looks effortless.

The hours before it don’t.

Quiet tastings. Side-by-side glasses. Notes that keep getting longer. Conversations with the chef until the pairing finally feels right.

I love this work, so the time rarely feels like work. Still, most people never see how much of it goes into letting a wine show who it really is.

I wrote about the research, the reflection, and the creativity behind these sensory evenings.

Link in bio - more to follow @bostondames @stoelzlelausitz @keukaspringvineyards @tri.state.eats

#wineeducation #sensoryexperience #womeninwine #winepairing #foodwinewomen by @thehappyvineks

“You cannot measure minerality. But you can taste it.” Alwin Jurtschitsch ✨

@alwin_jurtschitsch on pH, geology and the five minutes that can decide a vintage. thank you, I’ll win for an unforgettable walk-through time and nature. 🙏🍷

Story on thehappyvine.net, link in bio.

#otw #kamptal #singlevineyard #harvest #austria by @thehappyvineks

En Bodegas Sinforiano fuimos a conocer sus vinos… y acabamos bailando encima de un coche. 😂🍷🚗💃🏻

Esta bodega familiar, fundada en 1966 en Mucientes, en la D.O. Cigales, lleva generaciones cuidando sus viñedos y elaborando vinos que ponen en valor el territorio y las variedades de la zona. 🍇

Pero a @sinforianobodegas en Vinoinfluencers también venimos a esto: **brindar, reír, bailar y crear momentazos con gente increíble.** ❤️🥂

Gracias, Bodegas Sinforiano, por recibirnos y por el buen rollo.

@caroleya @corbelliorestichef @monica_Catalo
@thewine.librarian @thehappyvineks @thebrookeblend

🍷 Y tú, ¿qué harías después de una buena copa de vino: bailar, cantar o seguir catando? 😂👇

#Vinoinfluencers #BodegasSinforiano #DOCigales #Cigales #WineInfluencers WineLovers Enoturismo by @thehappyvineks

34 countries. Instant family.

Wine doesn’t just fill a glass.

It fills a room with people who already feel like home.

Valladolid. @vinoinfluencers World Awards 2026.

The common thread- within hours, strangers became friends.
I kept noticing the warmth.
The open friendliness.
The instant “I’ve known you forever” energy of this global wine community.

No pretense. Just stories, laughter, late-night toasts, and that quiet moment when someone hands you a glass and you both know you’re speaking the same language — even if the words are different.

Grateful for every person I met. Stay tuned for more 🥂

@lauracatenamd
@locoporvino
@detrasdeunacopa
@discoveries_pasimw @catacaldus @juliamchef10 @sinforianobodegas @dehesadeloscanonigos @vinosdesdelaterreta @mariathewineblonde @maria_arlandis @monica_catalo @sammelier_ @somm.pe @lauren_binnert @steve_somms.kg @lucadellaregina @caroleya @charliewines
@thebrookeblend @juliagracemcc @anthonyantgarner @garrisonkuhl @vinoymigracion @ksenia.karpenko.wine @anahitashamsbbc @corbelliorestechef @affordablewinehunter @thewine.librarian @viajecomajeni @jobavawinery @takojobava @madam_sommelier @bodegasvizar @ruthamaya.sherry @bodegasarzuaga
@carlosmchef7
@tiagomaravilha.wine
@recordiswines
@foxrunvineyards @keukaspringvineyards @hermannjwiemer
@swirlsipfeel

#wineinfluencer #wineexperience #winefriends #celebración #winemoments by @thehappyvineks

Last week at Schloss Grafenegg, the @oetw.traditionsweingueter Single Vineyard Summit felt like stepping into the quiet heart of Austrian wine. Hundreds of Erste Lage wines, poured in the beautiful Rudolf Buchbinder Hall, every one of them certified sustainable. Silent flights. Full concentration. Winemakers at the table. The kind of tasting that resets how you listen to a vineyard.

@manugrafenauer photographs captured it all — the light on the glass, the park, the focus in the room, the small human moments between pours. His images don’t just document the Summit; they let you feel the stillness and the pulse of it.
This is only a first glimpse. More stories, more glasses, more of what we lived there are coming to my feed.

Thank you, ÖTW, the growers, and Manuel, for an experience that lingers. More to follow!

#singlevineyard #austrianwine #wineevent #winetravel #storyteller by @thehappyvineks

🍷 What do these five wines have in common?

Watch & take a guess…

🇮🇹 They’re not from the same producer.
They’re not the same grape.
They’re not even the same style.

🌟 But they are all made by women I met last April in @campaniastories — women who immediately stopped me in my tracks with their clarity, strength, and quiet brilliance.

▫️Over the coming days I’ll be sharing their stories: the interviews, the wines, and what it felt like to sit across from them.

First story drops soon.

Which bottle are you most curious about? Tell me below in the comments ⬇️⬇️

#womeninspiringwomen #womeninwine #donnaitaliana #womenempowerment by @thehappyvineks

Last day on the lake. The kind you already know you’ll miss before it even ends. 🌊
This Terres de Saint-Louis 2025 from Coteaux Varois is the perfect last sip. Pale, luminous pink in the glass. It opens with strawberry, watermelon and a little citrus peel — like Provence sunshine poured over still water.
Crisp, dry, and effortlessly light. Fresh berries and herbs, a bright acidity that feels like a deep breath, and a finish as clean and quiet as the dock.
No more tomorrow here. Just this view, this glass, and the slow luxury of not rushing the goodbye.
Provence on a Canadian lake. I’ll take it. 🥂
#lakeside #provence #coteauxvarois #rosé #roséallday by @thehappyvineks

Cottage mode: fully on. 🌿
This @cavespringvineyard 2023 Gamay is what slowing down tastes like. Bright ruby in the glass, it opens with juicy raspberry, Bing cherry and a little black pepper — like the lake breeze just picked up wild berries and a hint of the woods.

Light, lively, and effortlessly drinkable. Soft tannins, bright acidity, a finish that lingers as quietly as the view.

No agenda. No rush. Just this glass, this water, and the kind of afternoon that actually lasts.
Niagara doing cottage life perfectly.

#cottageliving #ontario #gamay #vacationvibes #winetasting by @thehappyvineks